Having dealt with the departed souls in the third courtyard, Li Banfeng pushed open the fourth gate. He had taken only a few steps into the courtyard when war drums began to rumble, thundering in from all directions without end.
Li Banfeng swept his gaze across his surroundings. Across the vast courtyard, troops of every sort emerged in succession—cavalry, infantry, archers and crossbowmen, and even musketeers.
Such a grand formation?
Li Banfeng felt a twinge of real panic.
He couldn't tell whether these troops were real or illusions; the only thing he was sure of was that they weren't living people—they were all departed souls.
Weaving and dodging amid the forest of spears and rain of arrows, Li Banfeng lightly tapped his clock pendulum.
Catching his intent, the pendulum circled behind Li Banfeng, slit open his suit jacket, picked out a vinyl record from the lining, and, using its sharp tip, glided steadily over the record's grooves.
The mechanics of a gramophone had nothing to do with electromagnetism, relying solely on the friction and vibration between stylus and groove.
The pendulum was now serving as the needle—a tactic Li Banfeng and his wife had devised together.
Li Banfeng could use his Sprawling Compound technique to mimic his wife's singing voice, or play her records directly on the gramophone.
Yet Li Banfeng's vocal mastery fell far short of his wife's; certain foes could not be handled by his singing alone.
At the same time, it wasn't always convenient for him to haul out the gramophone. In moments of crisis, using the pendulum in place of a player served as a rough makeshift solution.
"Upon barren hills and ancient trails, bitter combat rages on,
Common folk shed crimson blood as battle lines are drawn.
Torches light the yellow sand, heaven and earth grow dim,
Dust obscures the stars above where wailing specters hymn."
This was the aria sung by Zhao Zilong in Changban Slope.
Though written for a martial male lead, it had been recorded by his wife. Renowned performers playing roles of the opposite sex was commonplace in the Pear Garden, and her distinctive guttural resonance rang through the verses.
The aria from Changban Slope carried tremendous grandeur, seemingly striking the courtyard's legions of spectral troops with awe.
Li Banfeng glanced around. Finding Xiao Yeci would be ideal, but if she wasn't here, he needed to retreat immediately rather than wage an all-out battle.
Sure enough, Xiao Yeci was nowhere to be seen. Just as Li Banfeng turned to leave, the opera actor suddenly appeared before him. His costume and makeup had shifted from a virtuous female lead into a handsome young scholar.
"Stay your step a moment, brother! Whence did that aria just now come?"
Li Banfeng looked at the actor, took out the record from behind him, and said, "It came from this. Have you ever seen a record? Want me to play it again for you?"
This was Li Banfeng's usual trick: start with the truth to win the enemy's trust, making it far smoother to deploy his Incontrovertible Words technique later.
Just as he was about to run the pendulum across the record again, the actor cried out in alarm, "Don't use a weapon! Don't scratch the record!"
Li Banfeng paused, startled, then snapped angrily, "What are you shouting for? Without a gramophone, that's the only way to play it!"
"I have a gramophone!" The actor's voice trembled slightly. "Let me hear it one more time, and I'll return your person to you!"
With that, the actor waved his sleeve. Several departed souls escorted Xiao Yeci forward.
Xiao Yeci's hands were bound, her mouth gagged, her face filled with terror.
Li Banfeng told the actor to send Xiao Yeci back to the first courtyard, and the actor complied.
Several ghosts carried over a gramophone to Li Banfeng. Kicking the ghosts aside, the actor carefully wiped down the player with his sleeve.
The gramophone hadn't been used in years, coated in a thick layer of dust. The actor wiped it clean with meticulous care, then fetched an oil can and oiled the mechanism.
Once everything was in order, the actor looked at Li Banfeng with eager anticipation.
Li Banfeng set the record onto the turntable. The actor gingerly cranked the handle, and the lyrics of Changban Slope began drifting from the horn.
The libretto itself was fierce and rousing, and his wife's singing carried immense emotional power; every time Li Banfeng heard this piece, his blood surged.
The actor opposite him, however, did not feel his blood surge. He wept.
Li Banfeng had never imagined a departed soul could shed tears, let alone sob uncontrollably.
When his crying subsided, the actor looked toward Li Banfeng. "Could you give this record to me?"
Li Banfeng waved a hand dismissively. "Out of the question! This is my magical treasure for slaying foes on the battlefield."
The actor sniffled. "How can you call this a mere magical treasure? This is a priceless rarity! You don't understand..."
Li Banfeng frowned. "How do I not understand? With this record, dealing with departed souls and monsters is a breeze."
"That only proves you truly don't understand! Bringing this record onto the battlefield is sheer desecration!" The actor wept even more bitterly, as if Li Banfeng had defiled something of supreme sanctity.
Before Li Banfeng could speak, the actor began singing through his sobs:
"Though heaven and earth may long endure, their time must pass away;
This sorrow stretches ever on, endless day by day...
If you won't give it, I'll buy it! Name your price—I beg of you, name your price..."
The actor's grief only deepened until he choked on his own words.
Li Banfeng retrieved the record and put it away. "Stop crying first. Let's find a place where we can talk."
Though they had fought for most of the night, Li Banfeng could tell this actor was a man of his word.
The two entered the main hall, where the actor ordered tea to be brewed.
Ghost servants brought in a teapot and cups. Li Banfeng didn't drink; there was no telling how ancient the tea leaves were.
All the actor wanted was to purchase the record, and the matter wasn't entirely off the table.
Li Banfeng laid out his price—three conditions in total.
"First: let us leave."
The actor agreed readily. "That is easily done."
"I don't just mean letting us leave this compound. I mean letting us leave this territory."
The actor pondered for a moment. "You wish to leave Wuyouping?"
"Wuyouping?" Li Banfeng had had no idea this place had a name.
The actor said, "That too is easily done. Wuyouping connects in every direction; anywhere within the lands of Puluo Province can be reached from here."
"Anywhere?" Li Banfeng was taken aback. "It borders every region in Puluo Province?"
The actor nodded. "And none of them require a travel permit."
Li Banfeng thought for a moment and asked, "How is that just like Kucaizhuang?"
The actor sighed. "There is a mystery behind it, but I do not care to tell you."
"Won't tell me, eh?" Li Banfeng rose. "Then the record isn't for sale."
"Wait!" The actor barred Li Banfeng's path. "In truth, you've already guessed it. Wuyouping was originally part of Puluo Province's Rear Three-Tenths, but over the years, it has nearly turned into Unexplained Lands. As for the reason, I cannot clearly say."
A Rear Three-Tenths land could transform into Unexplained Lands?
Li Banfeng was hearing this for the first time.
The actor continued, "Since you are already in Wuyouping, I will give you a map shortly. Follow it, and you certainly will not lose your way, but you must move swiftly; otherwise, you might stray into an oldland once more."
This confirmed Li Banfeng's suspicion: the compound truly belonged to an oldland.
Li Banfeng then stated his second condition: "Without this record, I lose a sharp tool for dealing with departed souls. You must compensate me with a magical treasure."
The actor showed an apologetic expression. "In days gone by, I indeed had several such magical treasures in hand. But times have changed, and I cannot produce a magical treasure now. However, I do have a spiritual item."
He had a departed soul fetch a wooden box. When he opened it, the ghosts immediately scurried far away.
The actor took out a horsewhip from the box and handed it to Li Banfeng. "Against departed souls with no cultivation, a single lash will shatter their souls to dust. Against souls below the third tier, a strike will severely wound them.
"Against souls below the fifth tier, a strike will cause intense agony. If an opponent's cultivation is at or above the fifth tier, the whip can still be used, but only as an ordinary weapon."
Li Banfeng took the whip and moved to give it a test crack.
The actor cried out, "What do you think you're doing?!"
If this whip truly harmed departed souls, testing it here was indeed improper.
Li Banfeng used his Perceiving Spiritual Voices technique to listen to the whip. It was quiet, without the slightest stir.
Li Banfeng frowned. "Does this thing possess spirituality?"
The actor said, "It is a spiritual item refined from empty spirits. It cannot advance, nor can it recognize a master, so it naturally cannot compare to a magical treasure, but its spirituality is ample enough."
Li Banfeng put away the whip and stated his third condition: "Since I'm selling the record to you, I need to know its origin. Who on earth is singing that aria on the record?"
Li Banfeng naturally knew who had sung it; the main purpose of asking was to probe.
The actor let out a long sigh. "The mystery behind it is truly not convenient to disclose..."
Li Banfeng pulled out the horsewhip. "Then the record isn't for sale."
The actor stopped Li Banfeng and said, "This aria comes from Agile Cavalry General Zhao Xiaowan. She was a famed general of the Great Huan dynasty."
"Which dynasty was Great Huan, exactly?"
"The former dynasty."
"How long ago was the former dynasty?"
"I can't recall. Truly, I can't remember."
The actor was speaking the truth. He was a departed soul living in an oldland; he had no concept of time whatsoever.
Li Banfeng asked, "What kind of person was Zhao Xiaowan?"
"A famous general, and also a famous opera star."
A famous general, Li Banfeng could imagine.
A famous singer, Li Banfeng could also imagine.
Yet these two identities were in obvious conflict.
"How could a famous general become an opera performer?"
The actor chuckled. "You have it backward. You should ask how an opera performer became a famous general.
"Zhao Xiaowan was an opera performer to begin with. She stepped onto the stage at seven and achieved fame at ten. When she was twelve, her troupe master was cast into prison for colluding with the Demonic Land, and Zhao Xiaowan was implicated and banished to military service.
"At seventeen, she rendered distinguished military service on the frontier, having her sentence pardoned and rising to the rank of captain. By twenty-three, accumulated military merits brought her back to the capital for conferment, where she was appointed Agile Cavalry General."
Li Banfeng was intrigued. "She was originally an opera singer. Even banished into the ranks, she should have been doing menial labor at most. How did she become a captain?"
A look of deep admiration appeared on the actor's face. "Because her natural talent was extraordinary. Her comrades in the army all said Xiaowan was born to command troops in battle. Once, she led thirty-odd civilian laborers and tied down over a hundred enemy soldiers for an entire day. Such an extraordinary woman is one of a kind under heaven."
"You saw her?"
"I did!" The actor answered with evident pride. "I watched her fight in battle and heard her sing opera. Even today, the memories remain as vivid as if they happened yesterday."
"What did she look like?"
"Beautiful—the greatest beauty under heaven!" A rapturous look came over the actor. "I am not the only one who said so; back then, many in the imperial court proclaimed her an unmatched beauty of the mortal world."
On this point, Li Banfeng harbored no doubt at all.
My wife is just that beautiful!
A single glance at that dignified, graceful phonograph horn was enough to set his spirit fluttering!
The actor sighed. "Back then, people said that once at the battle line, upon setting eyes on the Agile Cavalry General, half the enemy army was so enchanted they no longer wished to fight."
Li Banfeng asked, "What about the other half?"
According to the description in the history book, the other half had been terrified into submission by Zhao Xiaowan's imposing majesty.
The actor's account diverged from the book's: "The other half of the enemy army was frightened out of their wits by her deputy general, Hong Ying."
Hong Ying was his wife's deputy general?
"What did she look like, to terrify the enemy so?"
The actor recalled for a moment. "Beautiful, she was beautiful too! A bit inferior to Xiaowan, but still a peerless beauty of the mortal world.
"Speaking of which, Hong Ying and I were originally meant to have a matrimonial match, but later she and Zhao Xiaowan both met with imprisonment, and that union ended in nothing."
"Why were they thrown into prison?"
"That cannot be said." Terror suddenly crept across the actor's face, and he shook his head repeatedly. "That is the crime of lèse-majesté—it must never be spoken of!"
Li Banfeng lowered the brim of his hat, stood up, and said, "You won't tell me? Then the record isn't being sold to you!"
Chapter 253